(a) Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a poly(arylene ether) copolymer having an ion exchange group, particularly a positive ion exchange group, a method for manufacturing the same, and use thereof.
(b) Description of the Related Art
An ion exchange resin generally comprises an ion exchange functional group on a polymer. In particular, an ion exchange resin typically comprises a porous polymer structure containing functional groups with mobile ions, and may have fine pore size in a state of moisture. In general, ion exchange occurs when ions become trapped in or on the surfaces of the pores while other ions are simultaneously released. Ion exchange resins are broadly classified into a positive ion exchange resin, a negative ion exchange resin, and a mixed resin depending on the type of ion exchange functional group to be introduced (e.g. those that exchange positive ions—also called cation resins; those that exchange negative ions—also called anion resins; and those that exchange both positive and negative ions—mixed resins). Such ion exchange resins have been used for various purposes such as recovering of organic metal, air purification, catalysts, water treatment, medical fields and separation of proteins.
One example of a commercially available positive ion exchange resin is a styrene-based resin. In the styrene-based resin, an ion exchange group is introduced to the resin, which has a three dimensional network structure manufactured by using divinylbenzene as a crosslinking agent on styrene. Typically a sulfonic acid group is used as the exchange group. While such a resin is generally chemically stable to strong acids and bases and allows for ion exchanging in the entire pH range, if it is heated to temperatures of 150° C. or more, the resin is decomposed to reduce exchange capacity, density, and moisture adsorption ability. Further, if the resin is heated at 186° C. for 24 hours, it cannot be used because the exchange capacity is reduced by 15 to 40%.
In addition, most currently available ion exchange resins have limited ion exchange capacity, and processability is reduced because most resins are crosslinked. Thus, there is a need for a novel ion exchange resin that addresses these disadvantages.
The above information disclosed in this Background section is only for enhancement of understanding of the background of the invention and therefore it may contain information that does not form the prior art that is already known in this country to a person of ordinary skill in the art.